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Acta Neurochirurgica Jun 2021Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. DCM is common (estimated prevalence, 2% of adults) and significantly impacts quality... (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. DCM is common (estimated prevalence, 2% of adults) and significantly impacts quality of life. The AO Spine RECODE-DCM (Research Objectives and Common Data Elements in DCM) project has recently established the top research priorities for DCM. This article examines the extent to which existing research activity aligns with the established research priorities.
METHODS
A systematic review of MEDLINE and Embase for "Cervical" AND "Myelopathy" was conducted following PRISMA guidelines. Full-text papers in English, exclusively studying DCM, published between January 1, 1995 and August 08, 2020 were considered eligible. Extracted data for each study included authors, journal, year of publication, location, sample size and study design. Each study was then analysed for alignment to the established research priorities.
RESULTS
In total, 2261 papers with a total of 1,323,979 patients were included. Japan published more papers (625) than any other country. Moreover, 2005 (89%) of 2261 papers were aligned to at least one research priority. The alignment of papers to the different research priorities was unequal, with 1060 papers on the most researched priority alone (#15, predictors of outcome after treatment), but only 64 total papers on the least-researched 10 priorities. The comparative growth of research in the different priorities was also unequal, with some priorities growing and others plateauing over the past 5 years.
DISCUSSION
Research activity in DCM continues to grow, and the focus of this research remains on surgery. The established research priorities therefore represent a new direction for the field.
Topics: Cervical Vertebrae; Humans; Japan; Neurosurgery; Periodicals as Topic; Quality of Life; Research; Spinal Cord Diseases
PubMed: 33625603
DOI: 10.1007/s00701-021-04767-6 -
BMC Health Services Research May 2019Nursing and midwifery research activity is an important indicator of the quality of healthcare services and the status of nursing profession. The main aim of this study... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Nursing and midwifery research activity is an important indicator of the quality of healthcare services and the status of nursing profession. The main aim of this study was to assess the research activity in nursing and midwifery field in Arab countries.
METHOD
The current study implemented bibliometric method using Scopus database. The search strategy used country affiliation or journal name or keywords as a strategy to retrieve the required documents. The study period was from 1950 to2017. Analysis included a presentation of bibliometric indicators and VOSviewer mapping of the retrieved data.
RESULT
2935 documents were retrieved making up less than 1% of global nursing and midwifery research output. Of the retrieved documents, 25% were published in high rank (first quartile = Q1) journals. The majority (56.7%) of the retrieved documents were published in the last five years of the study period. The retrieved documents received an average of 6.9 citations per document with an h-index of 47. The total number of authors who took part in publishing the retrieved documents was 10,572, giving an average of 3.6 authors per article. Jordan ranked first in research output. Researchers from Jordan took part in over than one third (1023; 34.9%) of the retrieved documents. Lebanon (35.5%) ranked first in the percentage of documents published in Q1 journals. The United Arab Emirates ranked first in the percentage (67.4%) of publications with international authors. The most active journal involved in publishing nursing research from Arab countries was Life Science Journal (158; 5.4%). The University of Jordan was the most productive institution while the American University of Beirut ranked first in the percentage (36.9%) of documents published in Q1 journals. Author keyword analysis and10 most cited articles showed that non-communicable diseases and nursing education were the focus of nursing research in Arab countries.
CONCLUSIONS
Nursing and midwifery research activity in Arab countries has dramatically increased especially over the past five years. Despite this, nursing research is still in its infancy, lagging in quantity and quality compared to developed countries.
Topics: Arabs; Bibliometrics; Databases, Factual; Female; Humans; Jordan; Lebanon; Midwifery; Nursing; Pregnancy; Publications; Research; United Arab Emirates
PubMed: 31138250
DOI: 10.1186/s12913-019-4178-y -
Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases May 2019MetabERN is one of the 24 European Reference Networks created according to the European Union directive 2011/24/EU on patient's rights in cross border healthcare....
BACKGROUND
MetabERN is one of the 24 European Reference Networks created according to the European Union directive 2011/24/EU on patient's rights in cross border healthcare. MetabERN associates 69 centres in 18 countries, which provide care for patients with Hereditary Metabolic Diseases, and have the mission to reinforce research and provide training for health professionals in this field. MetabERN performed a survey in December 2017 with the aim to produce an overview documenting research activities and potentials within the network. As the centres are multidisciplinary, separated questionnaires were sent to the clinical, university and laboratory teams. Answers were received from 52 out of the 69 centres of the network, covering 16 countries. A descriptive analysis of the information collected is presented.
RESULTS
The answers indicate a marked interest of the respondents for research, who expressed high motivation and commitment, and estimated that the conditions to do research in their institution were mostly satisfactory. They are active in research, which according to several indicators, is competitive and satisfies standards of excellence, as well as the education programs offered in the respondent's universities. Research in the centres is primarily performed in genetics, pathophysiology, and epidemiology, and focuses on issues related to diagnosis. Few respondents declared having activity in human and social sciences, including research on patient's quality of life, patient's awareness, or methods for social support. Infrastructures offering services for medical research were rarely known and used by respondents, including national and international biobanking platforms. In contrast, respondents often participate to patient registries, even beyond their specific field of interest.
CONCLUSIONS
Taken as a whole, these results provide an encouraging picture of the research capacities and activities in the MetabERN network, which, with respect to the number and representativeness of the investigated centres, gives a comprehensive picture of research on Hereditary Metabolic Diseases in Europe, as well as the priorities for future actions. Marginal activity in human and social sciences points out the limited multidisciplinary constitution of the responding teams with possible consequences on their current capability to participate to patient's empowerment programs and efficiently collaborate with patient's advocacy groups.
Topics: Europe; Humans; Interdisciplinary Research; Quality of Life; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 31142374
DOI: 10.1186/s13023-019-1091-8 -
African Journal of Primary Health Care... Jun 2022Primary health care systems in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) need context-specific evidence to address current challenges. Increased family physician (FP) research activity...
BACKGROUND
Primary health care systems in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) need context-specific evidence to address current challenges. Increased family physician (FP) research activity could help fill this gap.
AIM
To describe the research activity, facilitators and barriers amongst AfriWon Renaissance members.
SETTING
An online programme was designed to improve research activity amongst members of AfriWon Renaissance, an organisation of early-career and trainee FPs in SSA. This article provides a baseline description of their research activity.
METHODS
All AfriWon Renaissance members were invited to participate in an online survey. A content-validated study tool assessed research activity, including participation in research meetings, engagement in research mentorship, number of projects and published articles. Facilitators and barriers were assessed via Likert scales and two open-ended questions. The researchers conducted descriptive statistics using Epi Info 7, a content analysis of open-ended responses and triangulation.
RESULTS
Amongst the 77 respondents, 49 (63.6%) were still in training. Over two-thirds (71.4%) had participated in a research discussion in the past month. Whilst more than half (63.5%) reported having a manuscript under development, only 26 (33.8%) reported a recent publication. Nearly all (94.8%) intend to continue research in their FP careers. The most common facilitators were the institutional requirement to conduct research and having supportive peers and mentors. The most predominant barriers were time constraints and a lack of training on analysis.
CONCLUSION
There is a cohort of committed young FP researchers who would benefit from efforts to address identified barriers and support for their ongoing research activity, in order to increase primary care research outputs in SSA.
Topics: Africa South of the Sahara; Cross-Sectional Studies; Humans; Physicians, Family; Research; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 35792629
DOI: 10.4102/phcfm.v14i1.3367 -
The Journal of Hand Surgery, European... Sep 2019
Topics: Europe; Hand; Humans; Internship and Residency; Orthopedics; Research; Surveys and Questionnaires
PubMed: 31411116
DOI: 10.1177/1753193419841875 -
Infection Dec 2022Tularemia disease attracts attention as an important contagious zoonosis that has increased its impact in recent years. The aim of the study is to analyze the...
INTRODUCTION
Tularemia disease attracts attention as an important contagious zoonosis that has increased its impact in recent years. The aim of the study is to analyze the publications on tularemia between 1980 and 2020.
METHODS
We performed literature retrieval in the Web of Science (WoS) on 22 September 2021. Search terms were "Francisella tularensis" and "Tularemia" in the article title for the period between January 1980 and December 2020. We determined the number of articles, keywords, countries, authors, and institutions for each publication. We visualized the data with the VOS viewer tool.
RESULTS
After all inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied finally, 1688 articles were analyzed. The number of articles has increased in recent years. The three most productive countries in tularemia were the USA (777 articles 46.03%), Sweden (113 articles 6.69%), and Turkey (95 articles, 5.63%). Most of the articles were from the journal of Infection and Immunity (II), Plos one, Journal of Clinical Microbiology (JCM), Emerging Infectious Diseases (EID), and Vaccine. Sjostedt A. and Umea University-Sweden were the most influential author and institution.
CONCLUSIONS
Productivity trend has been shown to increase in tularemia. High-income countries had a great influence on the literature in the field. Publications from the USA were in a high percentage among all articles. Related work may lead to the future direction of this dossier in the next years.
Topics: Humans; Bibliometrics; Research; Sweden; Turkey
PubMed: 35507235
DOI: 10.1007/s15010-022-01837-4 -
BMC Medical Research Methodology Sep 2019This article describes a bibliometric review of the scientific production, geographical distribution, collaboration, impact, and subject area focus of pneumonia research... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
This article describes a bibliometric review of the scientific production, geographical distribution, collaboration, impact, and subject area focus of pneumonia research indexed on the Web of Science over a 15-year period.
METHODS
We searched the Web of Science database using the Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) of "Pneumonia" from January 1, 2001 to December 31, 2015. The only document types we studied were original articles and reviews, analyzing descriptive indicators by five-year periods and the scientific production by country, adjusting for population, economic, and research-related parameters.
RESULTS
A total of 22,694 references were retrieved. The number of publications increased steadily over time, from 981 publications in 2001 to 1977 in 2015 (R = 0.956). The most productive country was the USA (38.49%), followed by the UK (7.18%) and Japan (5.46%). Research production from China increased by more than 1000%. By geographical area, North America (42.08%) and Europe (40.79%) were most dominant. Scientific production in low- and middle-income countries more than tripled, although their overall contribution to the field remained limited (< 15%). Overall, 18.8% of papers were the result of an international collaboration, although this proportion was much higher in sub-Saharan Africa (46.08%) and South Asia (23.43%). According to the specific MeSH terms used, articles focused mainly on "Pneumonia, Bacterial" (19.99%), followed by "Pneumonia, Pneumococcal" (7.02%) and "Pneumonia, Ventilator-Associated" (6.79%).
CONCLUSIONS
Pneumonia research increased steadily over the 15-year study period, with Europe and North America leading scientific production. About a fifth of all papers reflected international collaborations, and these were most evident in papers from sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
Topics: Bibliometrics; Biomedical Research; China; Europe; Humans; International Cooperation; Japan; Pneumonia; Publications; United States
PubMed: 31488065
DOI: 10.1186/s12874-019-0819-4 -
European Journal of Surgical Oncology :... Jan 2018The aim of this study was to analyze global variations in the level of cancer-related research activity and correlate this with cancer-specific mortality. (Review)
Review
INTRODUCTION
The aim of this study was to analyze global variations in the level of cancer-related research activity and correlate this with cancer-specific mortality.
METHODS
The SCOPUS database was explored to obtain data relating to the number of cancer-related publications per country. Cancer-specific mortality rates were obtained from the World Health Organization. Global variations in the level of scholarly activity were analyzed and correlated with variations in cancer-specific mortality.
RESULTS
Data for 142 countries were obtained and significant variations in the level of research activity was noted. The level of research activity increased with rising socio-economic status. The United States was the most prolific country with 222,300 publications followed by Japan and Germany. Several countries in different regions of the world had a low level of research activity. An inverse relationship between the level of research activity and cancer-specific mortality was noted. This relationship persisted even in countries with a low level of research activity. The socioeconomic status of a nation and geographic location (continent) had a mixed influence with an overall apparent correlation with cancer-related research activity.
CONCLUSION
This study demonstrates significant global variation in the level of cancer-related research activity and a correlation with cancer-specific mortality. The presence of a minimum set of standards for research literacy, as proposed by the European Society of Surgical Oncology and the Society of Surgical Oncology may contribute to enhanced research activity and improve outcomes for cancer patients worldwide.
Topics: Biomedical Research; Curriculum; Global Health; Humans; Medical Oncology; Neoplasms; Research Design; Surgical Oncology; Survival Rate
PubMed: 29242019
DOI: 10.1016/j.ejso.2017.07.018 -
PloS One 2015The aims of this study were to describe the key features of acute NHS Trusts with different levels of research activity and to investigate associations between research...
INTRODUCTION
The aims of this study were to describe the key features of acute NHS Trusts with different levels of research activity and to investigate associations between research activity and clinical outcomes.
METHODS
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Comprehensive Clinical Research Network (CCRN) funding and number of patients recruited to NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) portfolio studies for each NHS Trusts were used as markers of research activity. Patient-level data for adult non-elective admissions were extracted from the English Hospital Episode Statistics (2005-10). Risk-adjusted mortality associations between Trust structures, research activity and, clinical outcomes were investigated.
RESULTS
Low mortality Trusts received greater levels of funding and recruited more patients adjusted for size of Trust (n = 35, 2,349 £/bed [95% CI 1,855-2,843], 5.9 patients/bed [2.7-9.0]) than Trusts with expected (n = 63, 1,110 £/bed, [864-1,357] p<0.0001, 2.6 patients/bed [1.7-3.5] p<0.0169) or, high (n = 42, 930 £/bed [683-1,177] p = 0.0001, 1.8 patients/bed [1.4-2.1] p<0.0005) mortality rates. The most research active Trusts were those with more doctors, nurses, critical care beds, operating theatres and, made greater use of radiology. Multifactorial analysis demonstrated better survival in the top funding and patient recruitment tertiles (lowest vs. highest (odds ratio & 95% CI: funding 1.050 [1.033-1.068] p<0.0001, recruitment 1.069 [1.052-1.086] p<0.0001), middle vs. highest (funding 1.040 [1.024-1.055] p<0.0001, recruitment 1.085 [1.070-1.100] p<0.0001).
CONCLUSIONS
Research active Trusts appear to have key differences in composition than less research active Trusts. Research active Trusts had lower risk-adjusted mortality for acute admissions, which persisted after adjustment for staffing and other structural factors.
Topics: Adult; Biomedical Research; Economics, Hospital; Hospital Mortality; Humans; State Medicine; United Kingdom
PubMed: 25719608
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0118253 -
International Journal of Nursing... Oct 2022Bibliometric analysis of the nursing literature can provide insights into the current state and dynamics of the nursing profession. This study aimed to assess global...
AIM
Bibliometric analysis of the nursing literature can provide insights into the current state and dynamics of the nursing profession. This study aimed to assess global nursing-related research activity from 2009 to 2020.
METHOD
The corpus of nursing papers was harvested from the Web of Science Core Collection database. The bibliometric indicators and VOSviewer mapping of the retrieved papers were presented.
RESULTS
The search found 109,782 papers, and 39.0% of papers reported funded studies. Publication numbers were increasing. The USA was the most prolific country in literature production and international collaboration in nursing studies. International cooperation in nursing research was dominated by developed regions. Among the 20 most cited articles, 75% were published in first quartile journals, and review papers received a higher number of citations than original research articles. Author keyword analysis identified 'quality of life', 'mental health', 'nursing students' education' and 'adolescent' as common nursing focus topics.
CONCLUSIONS
The publication trend of nursing papers was positive. However, several problems were associated with nursing research activity, including low research funding, regionally centred research activity and inactivity of developing regions in terms of international collaborations, which need to be addressed by policy makers, nursing managers and scholars.
Topics: Adolescent; Bibliometrics; Databases, Factual; Education, Nursing; Humans; Nursing Research
PubMed: 35599432
DOI: 10.1111/ijn.13063